| | JULY 20218CIOReviewIN MY OPINIONHOW MULTI-TOUCH MARKETING IS CHANGING THE FUTURE RIGHT UNDER YOUR NOSEIn a world where specialization from an early age--whether in school, the arts or even sports--is increasingly becoming the norm, one would expect the most successful people in the world to have taken a direct flight toward their achievements. Master the cello by age 7, play in a major symphony orchestra by high school and eventually we could all become like Yo-Yo Ma, right? Not necessarily. Doing things just one way, no matter how prolific one is in his or her methods, can make it harder to spot creative solutions that might otherwise be obvious to a more well-rounded observer. This theory on the importance of prioritizing breadth over depth in learning can apply to nearly any domain, but it is particularly relevant when considering the current state of the marketing industry.Don't just mail it inFar too many marketing veterans are still relying on that old mainstay: direct mail and print marketing. Many of marketing's By Jeramy Tipton, Senior Vice President, Distribution Expansion & Consumer Markets, Aflac [NYSE: AFL]most powerful professionals built their careers off this strategy, so it is no wonder that it still holds such strong appeal. Direct marketing is still valuable in some instances today, and there have been modern innovations in this area. For example, we now know how important a compelling call to action is to successful print efforts. As technology continues to change the game, it is time to embrace multi-touch marketing. Reaching a target with consistent messaging across several mediums,multi-touch marketing arose from the popularity of online and social media platforms that facilitate interactions with both consumers and brands. Instead of sending ceaseless print mailers to the same place, marketers can reach targeted audiences across the entire internet through email campaigns, search engines and social media.By no means is direct mail marketing extinct, nor should it be. Print campaigns prove to yield significant increases with brand awareness and recall, but evidence is mounting that only sending mailers is doing a disservice to your marketing potential. In fact, one study found that integrating digital efforts with a print campaign resulted in 75% more attention captured and a 25% higher campaign response rate.
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